Ha Tae-keung, head of the Korea Insurance Training Institute and a former lawmaker of the People Power Party, said consumers should avoid buying products endorsed by actors who appeared in "Assassins," a film at the center of a dispute over its portrayal of history. He also proposed a nonviolent civic campaign to push the actors' films and television dramas off the air.
Writing on social media on the 2nd, Ha noted reports of a boycott targeting products endorsed by Yoo Hae-jin, who stars in the film. "There are many means of struggle in a 'Stop hate for profit' campaign to drive out directors and actors who sell conspiracy and hatred to make money," he wrote.
"Looking at cases overseas, there are boycotts of related products and campaigns pressuring streaming platforms such as Netflix to take down films directed by or featuring the people involved," he said. "This kind of nonviolent civic action is a far more sophisticated form of civic movement."
"Assassins," directed by Hur Jin-ho, draws on the Aug. 15, 1974, shooting that killed first lady Yuk Young-soo and follows an attempt to trace who was behind the attack. Since its release, some critics have argued that the film entertains the theory that then-President Park Chung-hee was behind the incident.
The production team said on the 28th of last month that the film "was not made to establish a new historical conclusion or to deny or distort established facts."
